Support > Compatibility > LightWave 3D v7 and v8

 

This plugin enables LightWave 3D® versions 7 and 8 to render a scene to an EPix file or panorama.

The download contains all the files you need for Windows operating system and Mac OS X. 

Installation

1. Copy lwepix.p to a suitable folder (for example, to the lightwave\plugins folder.
2. Copy lwepix_panorama.ls to a suitable folder (for example, to the lightwave\lscripts folder for Lightwave 7, or the lightwave\plugins\lscripts folder for Lightwave 8.
3. Copy stitch.exe to the Lightwave\programs folder.
4. Start LightWave 7, and choose Layout > Plug-ins > Add Plug-ins, or start LightWave 8, and choose the Utilities tab and click Add Plug-ins, select lwepix.p and click Open.
   Lightwave should report 3 plugins successfully added.
5. Choose Add Plug-ins again and select lwepix_panorama.ls and click Open.
   LightWave should report 1 plugin successfully added.
6. In LightWave 7, choose Layout > Interface > Edit Menu Layout. In LightWave 8, choose Edit > Edit Menu Layout.
7. Expand the Plug-ins section of the Command list, then drag the "Render EPix Panorama" command to a suitable menu, for example to the Rendering menu.

1. Open the Surface Editor Panel (F5) and select the Shaders tab.
2. For each surface you wish to identify, add 'ISI_surfaceID' to the list of shaders. 

Any surfaces which are not given this shader will be grouped as a single material in the EPix file.

If you select a Surface Name using Edit by Scene, then all surfaces with that name will have the same material in Piranesi. If you use Edit by Object, then surfaces with the same name on different objects will have different materials in Piranesi.

Select 'Low' or a better anti-aliasing level. If you use an 'Enhanced' anti-aliasing level, some pixels may receive the wrong material ID. This can be avoided by using a different anti-aliasing level.

Unless the image is rendered in a single segment, the EPix plug-ins use a depth buffer that contains artefacts. You may therefore need to increase the segment memory using the Camera Properties Panel. For panoramas, each square face is generated separately and the segment memory needs to be sufficient to render one face.

Generating standard EPix files

1. In LightWave 7, select the Scene tab and then Image Process. In LightWave 8, select Window > Image Processing.
2. Select ISI_epix as one of the Image Filter Plug-ins.
   You should place it after any plugin whose effects you want to see in the EPix file.

Double-clicking on the entry for the Informatix EPix writing plugin, in the list of selected plugins, allows you to specify a base filename. 
If you leave the base filename blank then the name of the scene file is used. The plugin creates EPix files whose names are derived from the base filename by appending the frame number and setting the extension to .epx.

One EPix file will be created for each frame rendered.

Generating panoramic EPix files

1. If you have already selected the ISI_epix Image Filter Plug-in and specified a base filename, you need to clear the base filename.
   Double-click the Informatix_pix plugin in the list of selected plugins and clear the filename.
2. Select 'Render EPix Panorama' from the Rendering menu.
   Check that the Stage is 'Face 1', specify the output file and resolution and click OK.
3. When the render is complete, click Continue and select 'Render EPix Panorama' again.
   The Stage will be 'Face 2' and the file and resolution controls are disabled, click OK.
4. Repeat to generate the remaining faces.
5. After rendering 'Face 6' completes, click Continue and select 'Render EPix Panorama' again.
   The Stage is now 'Combine Faces', click OK.

LightWave® and LightWave 3D® are registered trademarks of NewTek, Inc.